EP0585760B1 - Multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor - Google Patents
Multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP0585760B1 EP0585760B1 EP93113375A EP93113375A EP0585760B1 EP 0585760 B1 EP0585760 B1 EP 0585760B1 EP 93113375 A EP93113375 A EP 93113375A EP 93113375 A EP93113375 A EP 93113375A EP 0585760 B1 EP0585760 B1 EP 0585760B1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- sensor
- door
- base
- photoelectric sensor
- beam photoelectric
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Lifetime
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- 238000012544 monitoring process Methods 0.000 description 3
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Classifications
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- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01D—MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G01D11/00—Component parts of measuring arrangements not specially adapted for a specific variable
- G01D11/24—Housings ; Casings for instruments
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- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01D—MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G01D5/00—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable
- G01D5/26—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light
- G01D5/32—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light with attenuation or whole or partial obturation of beams of light
- G01D5/34—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light with attenuation or whole or partial obturation of beams of light the beams of light being detected by photocells
- G01D5/342—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light with attenuation or whole or partial obturation of beams of light the beams of light being detected by photocells the sensed object being the obturating part
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- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01V—GEOPHYSICS; GRAVITATIONAL MEASUREMENTS; DETECTING MASSES OR OBJECTS; TAGS
- G01V8/00—Prospecting or detecting by optical means
- G01V8/10—Detecting, e.g. by using light barriers
- G01V8/20—Detecting, e.g. by using light barriers using multiple transmitters or receivers
Definitions
- This invention relates to photoelectric sensors and in particular to through beam photoelectric sensors. Still more particularly, the invention relates to through beam photoelectric sensors which are ganged together in a common housing.
- the sensor of this application comprises a separable housing wherein the light emitting elements of these photoelectric sensors are positioned in one of the members and the photodetecting elements of the sensor are disposed in the other of the members and the sensor is assembled around the material to be monitored.
- the two housing members are hinged together and a flexible electrical conductor extends between the two housing members. Hinging the two members together also provides improved alignment between the respective light emitting devices and photodetectors as well as preventing loss of one of the members during installation or service.
- the hinged members of the sensor are mounted as a separable unit to a base and may be mounted in one of two operating positions rotationally spaced 180 degrees apart to enable the hinge to be located at either side of the sensing stations at which the material to be monitored is located.
- the sensor unit and the base each comprise one portion of a plug-in electrical connector to facilitate connecting the sensor unit to the base which is connected to the control system for the manufacturing or processing apparatus.
- the plug-in connector portion associated with the base is preferably symmetrical about a center point to receive the plug-in connector portion of the sensor unit in either of the two operating positions.
- the sensor base is provided with a plurality of indicator devices which correspond to the respective sensing stations and are not dependent upon the particular operating position of the sensor unit.
- the multistation through beam photoelectric sensor 2 of this invention comprises a sensor unit 4 which is detachably mounted to a base 6 in one of two operating positions rotationally spaced 180 degrees.
- Sensor unit 4 comprises a body 8 and a cover 10 joined together at one end by a hinge 12.
- Body 8 is a hollow rectangular shaped housing element open to the back side thereof and having four rearwardly extending threaded studs 8a located at the respective corners.
- the forward face of body 8 is relieved at 8b and has a central opening 8c surrounded by a beveled transition surface 8d extending between the opening 8c and the recessed surface 8b.
- Guide means such as molded projections 8e may be provided on surface 8b for assisting in the alignment of the material to be sensed.
- One end of sensor body 8 is provided with a pair of hinge arms 8f located along the top and bottom edges of the body, the arms having holes extending therethrough and axially aligned from top to bottom as oriented in the drawings.
- Cover 10 is a hollow housing member having a cover 10a secured over an open forward side thereof by fastener means such as screws (not shown).
- the rearwardly oriented surface of cover 10 is relieved at 10b similar to surface 8b of body 8.
- Surface 10b also has a central aperture 10c and a surrounding beveled transition surface 10d.
- Guides 10e may be provided on surface 10b if desired to cooperate with the guides 8e in providing positioning or guiding means for the material to be monitored.
- a boss 10f is provided at one end of cover 10 disposed centrally between the upper and lower surfaces thereof. While not specifically shown, boss 10f has threaded holes coaxially aligned in the upper and lower surfaces thereof.
- Cover 10 is attached to body 8 by inserting boss 10f between arms 8f and securing shouldered screws 14 through the holes in arms 8f and threading them into the tapped holes of boss 10f.
- cover 10 is hinged to body 8 for swinging open and closed upon the body 8.
- a latch 10g on cover 10 engages a corresponding latch receptacle 8g on body 8 to releasably retain the cover 10 closed upon the body 8.
- the sensor shown in the drawings has four individual photoelectric sensors spaced in the sensor unit housing at intervals corresponding to the stations at which sensing is desired.
- the sensor unit of this invention can accommodate as many as eight individual photoelectric sensors in even groups of two, i.e. four, six or eight. Where more than four sensing stations are required, the arrangement of the guides 8e and 10e is necessarily modified.
- a piece of transparent glass or plastic 16 is placed over the respective aperture 8c and 10c in the body and cover to close off the respective aperture.
- a mounting block 18 is provided for both the body and the cover, the block being a long shallow U-shaped channel having four holes spaced along and extending through the bight portion. The number of holes corresponds to the number of sensing stations that the sensor 2 is intended to accommodate.
- photodetector diodes 20 or the like are cemented in place within the respective holes of the mounting block 18 which is located in the body 8 of the sensor unit 4.
- the block 18 and diodes 20 are secured to a printed circuit board 22 by soldering the leads of the diodes 20 to the circuit board.
- One portion 26 of a plug-in electrical connector 24 is attached to the rear surface of printed circuit board 22 and electrically connected to appropriate traces on the circuit board for joining the leads of the photodetector diodes 20 to the respective plug-in prongs of the connector 24.
- Printed circuit board 22 and the assembled elements are positioned within the open back side of body 8 such that the bight of guide block 18 is positioned against the back side of window 16 with the circuit board 22 resting against projections within the housing body 8.
- the hollow cavity of housing member 8 is then filled with an epoxy resin (not shown) to secure the electronic assembly in place within the sensor body and to close off the back side of the sensor body.
- the guide block 18 which is used in cover 10 also has four holes therein in correspondence with the holes provided in the other guide block 18 used in body 8.
- a plurality of light emitting devices such as light emitting diodes (LEDs) 30 are secured in the holes by an adhesive.
- the wire leads of the diodes 30 are soldered to the appropriate traces of a printed circuit board 32.
- a snap action pushbutton reset switch 34 is attached to printed circuit board 32 at the opposite side from diodes 30.
- the assembly is positioned within the hollow housing of cover 10 such that the bight portion of guide block 18 abuts the inside of window 16 and circuit board 32 rests against appropriate projections within the cover 10.
- Switch 34 extends through a hole 10h in cover plate 10a which is secured to the cover housing 10 by the screws (not shown) after the electronic assembly is assembled thereto.
- Light emitting diodes 30 are aligned with and disposed across the space provided by recessed surfaces 8b and 10b from photodetector diodes 20 to form four photoelectric through beam sensors.
- a multiple conductor flexible cable 36 extends through openings in sensor body 8 and cover 10 and extends therebetween to connect the printed circuit board 32 with respective traces on printed circuit board 22 and subsequently to appropriate pins on the plug-in connector portion 26.
- the base 6 comprises a front housing member 38 and a rear housing member 40 which are secured together by screws 42 which extend through holes 40a at the four corners of rear housing member 40 to take into aligned blind tapped holes open rearwardly in front housing member 38.
- Base housing members 38 and 40 serve to mount an electronic printed circuit board 44 therebetween.
- Printed circuit board 44 has another portion 28 of plug-in connector 24 bonded to a forward surface thereof.
- Connector portion 28 is actually a plurality of multiple socket connector portions bonded to the printed circuit board 44 in a particular pattern which is symmetrical about a center point thereof.
- the sockets of the respective connector elements are electrically connected to appropriate traces on the printed circuit board 44.
- LEDs 46 are mounted on the lower front surface of printed circuit board 44 and electrically connected to appropriate traces thereon.
- the four LEDs 46 correspond to the respective sensing stations of the sensor 2.
- Housing 38 is provided with four holes 38a along its lower edge through which the respective LEDs 46 project to be visible to the exterior of the sensor housing.
- the forward housing member 38 is also provided with an aperture 38b defined by a peripheral flange 38c which corresponds in profile to the rear surface of sensor body 8.
- Flange 38c has holes 38d extending therethrough at the four corners in alignment with studs 8a.
- Tubular rivets 48 are inserted through the holes 38d and aligned holes 44a in printed circuit board 44 to project through holes 40b in rear housing member 40 and are turned over at the external surface of rear housing member 40 to further secure housing members 38 and 40 together and to positively position printed circuit board assembly 44 within the base housing.
- screws 42 and the appropriate holes 40a and the blind tapped holes in housing 38 may be omitted and the housing members 38 and 40 held together solely by the tubular rivets 48.
- a flexible cable conductor is attached to printed circuit board 44 and brought out externally from base 6 for connecting the sensor 2 to external control apparatus. Also not shown are other electrical components and circuitry of the printed circuit board 44 which are not material to this invention.
- the plug-in connector portion 28 mounted on printed circuit board 44 and disposed within the opening 38b comprises an elongated row of an odd number of sockets.
- the center socket is a ground connection whereas alternate sockets working outward from the center socket are light emitting device sockets and photodetector sockets, respectively.
- the opposite ends of the connector 28 have a single socket on either side of the center row, forming a three socket vertical row as oriented in the drawings. These are positive and negative power connection sockets which are diagonally the same polarity.
- sensor unit 4 may be attached to base 6 by inserting studs 8a through tubular rivets 48 and pushing the pins of plug-in connector element 26 into the sockets of plug-in connector element 28 such that the ends of studs 8a project beyond the rear surface of rear housing member 40 of base 6.
- a gasket 50 is interposed between the rear surface of sensor unit 4 and the flange 38c of housing member 38 to seal the joint therebetween.
- Nuts 52 secure the sensor unit 4 to the base 6 and serve as a convenient means of attaching a mounting bracket 54 to the sensor.
- the photodetector 20 will receive more or less light and will emit an appropriate electric signal.
- the LED indicator 46 corresponding to that station will preferably be illuminated (or will be extinguished if the indicators are preferred to be illuminated initially) to indicate a potential problem at that particular station.
- the sensor unit 4 may be installed to base 6 as shown in the drawings with the hinge 12 located to the left of the sensor unit and sensing stations, or the sensor unit may be rotated 180 degrees and then installed to base 6 with the hinge 12 located to the right of the various sensor stations so that the door 10 opens to the right.
- the symmetrical plug-in connector element 28 allows the sensor unit 4 to be rotated 180 degrees such that the hinge 12 is located on the right-hand end and then attached to the base.
- the symmetry of the connector 28 permits LEDs 30 and photodetectors 20 of the sensor unit 4 to be connected to sockets associated with a respective sensing station, even though the particular LEDs and the photodetectors are not the identical members as were received in those sockets when the sensor unit 4 was installed with the hinge 12 on the left.
- the sockets of connector element 28, the circuitry and traces on printed circuit board 44 and the indicators 46 are dedicated to particular respective sensing stations, while the respective light emitting diodes 30 and the photodetectors 20 are not sensitive to any particular sensing station.
- the hinged structure of the sensor unit 4 facilitates mounting the sensor 2 to apparatus.
- the door 10 can be made to open either right or left depending upon the orientation of sensor unit 4 upon base 6.
- the ability of the door to open allows the sensor 2 to be positioned to apparatus after the material M to be sensed is in place, or facilitates replacing the material during operation.
- a complete sensor unit 4 may be removed from base 6 and a new unit 4 attached thereto in little time.
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- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Geophysics (AREA)
- Geophysics And Detection Of Objects (AREA)
- Switches Operated By Changes In Physical Conditions (AREA)
Description
- This invention relates to photoelectric sensors and in particular to through beam photoelectric sensors. Still more particularly, the invention relates to through beam photoelectric sensors which are ganged together in a common housing.
- The need for sensing and the use of sensors for monitoring conditions in manufacturing and processing functions is markedly increasing as the controls for such functions become more complex and rapidly responsive to changing conditions of the functions. As a result, manufacturing and processing apparatus incorporate a large number of sensor devices, often in small and remote locations within the apparatus. The size of individual sensors has been decreasing which enables them to be mounted in smaller spaces, but often the number of sensors which may be mounted within a given space is limited by the mounting hardware for the sensors. As a result, several sensors are mounted in a common housing for monitoring several sensing stations which are in close proximity to each other. For example, it may be desired to monitor the density of a liquid flowing in several closely spaced transparent conduits or to monitor the presence of absence or other condition of multiple strands of material, e.g. wire strands from a wire drawing apparatus or the like. In such applications where a through beam photoelectric sensor is used, it is often difficult to interrupt the material to be sensed when installing the sensing apparatus.
- This invention which is defined in
claims - For still greater flexibility in mounting the sensor to the apparatus, the hinged members of the sensor are mounted as a separable unit to a base and may be mounted in one of two operating positions rotationally spaced 180 degrees apart to enable the hinge to be located at either side of the sensing stations at which the material to be monitored is located. The sensor unit and the base each comprise one portion of a plug-in electrical connector to facilitate connecting the sensor unit to the base which is connected to the control system for the manufacturing or processing apparatus. The plug-in connector portion associated with the base is preferably symmetrical about a center point to receive the plug-in connector portion of the sensor unit in either of the two operating positions. In a preferred embodiment, the sensor base is provided with a plurality of indicator devices which correspond to the respective sensing stations and are not dependent upon the particular operating position of the sensor unit. These and other features of the invention will become more readily apparent when reading the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
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- Fig. 1 is an exploded isometric view of the multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor of this invention;
- Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the photoelectric sensor of Fig. 1 shown partially exploded and partially in cross section;
- Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view through substantially the center of the assembled multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor of this invention;
- Fig. 4 is a front elevational view of the base of the photoelectric sensor of this invention with the sensing unit removed therefrom; and
- Fig. 5 is an end elevational view of the photoelectric sensor of this invention taken from a hinged end of the sensor.
- The multistation through beam
photoelectric sensor 2 of this invention comprises asensor unit 4 which is detachably mounted to abase 6 in one of two operating positions rotationally spaced 180 degrees.Sensor unit 4 comprises abody 8 and acover 10 joined together at one end by ahinge 12.Body 8 is a hollow rectangular shaped housing element open to the back side thereof and having four rearwardly extending threadedstuds 8a located at the respective corners. The forward face ofbody 8 is relieved at 8b and has acentral opening 8c surrounded by a beveled transition surface 8d extending between the opening 8c and therecessed surface 8b. Guide means such as moldedprojections 8e may be provided onsurface 8b for assisting in the alignment of the material to be sensed. One end ofsensor body 8 is provided with a pair ofhinge arms 8f located along the top and bottom edges of the body, the arms having holes extending therethrough and axially aligned from top to bottom as oriented in the drawings. -
Cover 10 is a hollow housing member having acover 10a secured over an open forward side thereof by fastener means such as screws (not shown). The rearwardly oriented surface ofcover 10 is relieved at 10b similar tosurface 8b ofbody 8. Surface 10b also has acentral aperture 10c and a surroundingbeveled transition surface 10d.Guides 10e may be provided on surface 10b if desired to cooperate with theguides 8e in providing positioning or guiding means for the material to be monitored. Aboss 10f is provided at one end ofcover 10 disposed centrally between the upper and lower surfaces thereof. While not specifically shown,boss 10f has threaded holes coaxially aligned in the upper and lower surfaces thereof.Cover 10 is attached tobody 8 by insertingboss 10f betweenarms 8f and securingshouldered screws 14 through the holes inarms 8f and threading them into the tapped holes ofboss 10f. Thuscover 10 is hinged tobody 8 for swinging open and closed upon thebody 8. Alatch 10g oncover 10 engages acorresponding latch receptacle 8g onbody 8 to releasably retain thecover 10 closed upon thebody 8. - The sensor shown in the drawings has four individual photoelectric sensors spaced in the sensor unit housing at intervals corresponding to the stations at which sensing is desired. The sensor unit of this invention can accommodate as many as eight individual photoelectric sensors in even groups of two, i.e. four, six or eight. Where more than four sensing stations are required, the arrangement of the
guides plastic 16 is placed over therespective aperture mounting block 18 is provided for both the body and the cover, the block being a long shallow U-shaped channel having four holes spaced along and extending through the bight portion. The number of holes corresponds to the number of sensing stations that thesensor 2 is intended to accommodate. Fourphotodetector diodes 20 or the like are cemented in place within the respective holes of themounting block 18 which is located in thebody 8 of thesensor unit 4. When thephotodetector diodes 20 are firmly secured in place by the adhesive, theblock 18 anddiodes 20 are secured to a printedcircuit board 22 by soldering the leads of thediodes 20 to the circuit board. Oneportion 26 of a plug-inelectrical connector 24 is attached to the rear surface of printedcircuit board 22 and electrically connected to appropriate traces on the circuit board for joining the leads of thephotodetector diodes 20 to the respective plug-in prongs of theconnector 24. Printedcircuit board 22 and the assembled elements are positioned within the open back side ofbody 8 such that the bight ofguide block 18 is positioned against the back side ofwindow 16 with thecircuit board 22 resting against projections within thehousing body 8. The hollow cavity ofhousing member 8 is then filled with an epoxy resin (not shown) to secure the electronic assembly in place within the sensor body and to close off the back side of the sensor body. - The
guide block 18 which is used incover 10 also has four holes therein in correspondence with the holes provided in theother guide block 18 used inbody 8. A plurality of light emitting devices such as light emitting diodes (LEDs) 30 are secured in the holes by an adhesive. The wire leads of thediodes 30 are soldered to the appropriate traces of a printedcircuit board 32. A snap actionpushbutton reset switch 34 is attached to printedcircuit board 32 at the opposite side fromdiodes 30. The assembly is positioned within the hollow housing ofcover 10 such that the bight portion ofguide block 18 abuts the inside ofwindow 16 andcircuit board 32 rests against appropriate projections within thecover 10.Switch 34 extends through ahole 10h incover plate 10a which is secured to thecover housing 10 by the screws (not shown) after the electronic assembly is assembled thereto.Light emitting diodes 30 are aligned with and disposed across the space provided byrecessed surfaces 8b and 10b fromphotodetector diodes 20 to form four photoelectric through beam sensors. A multiple conductorflexible cable 36 extends through openings insensor body 8 and cover 10 and extends therebetween to connect theprinted circuit board 32 with respective traces on printedcircuit board 22 and subsequently to appropriate pins on the plug-inconnector portion 26. - The
base 6 comprises afront housing member 38 and arear housing member 40 which are secured together byscrews 42 which extend throughholes 40a at the four corners ofrear housing member 40 to take into aligned blind tapped holes open rearwardly infront housing member 38.Base housing members circuit board 44 therebetween. Printedcircuit board 44 has anotherportion 28 of plug-inconnector 24 bonded to a forward surface thereof.Connector portion 28 is actually a plurality of multiple socket connector portions bonded to the printedcircuit board 44 in a particular pattern which is symmetrical about a center point thereof. The sockets of the respective connector elements are electrically connected to appropriate traces on the printedcircuit board 44. Four light emitting diodes (LEDs) 46 are mounted on the lower front surface of printedcircuit board 44 and electrically connected to appropriate traces thereon. The fourLEDs 46 correspond to the respective sensing stations of thesensor 2.Housing 38 is provided with fourholes 38a along its lower edge through which therespective LEDs 46 project to be visible to the exterior of the sensor housing. - The
forward housing member 38 is also provided with anaperture 38b defined by aperipheral flange 38c which corresponds in profile to the rear surface ofsensor body 8.Flange 38c hasholes 38d extending therethrough at the four corners in alignment withstuds 8a. Fourtubular rivets 48 are inserted through theholes 38d and aligned holes 44a in printedcircuit board 44 to project throughholes 40b inrear housing member 40 and are turned over at the external surface ofrear housing member 40 to further securehousing members circuit board assembly 44 within the base housing. If desired, screws 42 and theappropriate holes 40a and the blind tapped holes inhousing 38 may be omitted and thehousing members circuit board 44 and brought out externally frombase 6 for connecting thesensor 2 to external control apparatus. Also not shown are other electrical components and circuitry of the printedcircuit board 44 which are not material to this invention. - Referring to Fig. 4, the plug-in
connector portion 28 mounted on printedcircuit board 44 and disposed within theopening 38b comprises an elongated row of an odd number of sockets. The center socket is a ground connection whereas alternate sockets working outward from the center socket are light emitting device sockets and photodetector sockets, respectively. The opposite ends of theconnector 28 have a single socket on either side of the center row, forming a three socket vertical row as oriented in the drawings. These are positive and negative power connection sockets which are diagonally the same polarity. Accordingly,sensor unit 4 may be attached tobase 6 by insertingstuds 8a throughtubular rivets 48 and pushing the pins of plug-inconnector element 26 into the sockets of plug-inconnector element 28 such that the ends ofstuds 8a project beyond the rear surface ofrear housing member 40 ofbase 6. Agasket 50 is interposed between the rear surface ofsensor unit 4 and theflange 38c ofhousing member 38 to seal the joint therebetween.Nuts 52 secure thesensor unit 4 to thebase 6 and serve as a convenient means of attaching a mountingbracket 54 to the sensor. - When
sensor unit 4 is so attached tobase 6, electric power is supplied frombase 6 through the plug-inconnector 24 to thephotodetector diodes 20 and by means of theflexible conductor 36, to thelight emitting diodes 30. Output signals ofphotodetector diodes 20 are also transmitted to the printedcircuit board 44 through the plug-inconnector 24. The material M to be monitored (Fig. 3) is disposed at each sensing station between thecover 10 andbody 8 of thesensor unit 4 and extends through the beam of light emitted fromLED 30 tophotodetector diode 20. In the event the material M is not present or its condition changes, such as the density of a liquid in a conduit or the thickness of the material M, thephotodetector 20 will receive more or less light and will emit an appropriate electric signal. TheLED indicator 46 corresponding to that station will preferably be illuminated (or will be extinguished if the indicators are preferred to be illuminated initially) to indicate a potential problem at that particular station. - The
sensor unit 4 may be installed tobase 6 as shown in the drawings with thehinge 12 located to the left of the sensor unit and sensing stations, or the sensor unit may be rotated 180 degrees and then installed tobase 6 with thehinge 12 located to the right of the various sensor stations so that thedoor 10 opens to the right. The symmetrical plug-inconnector element 28 allows thesensor unit 4 to be rotated 180 degrees such that thehinge 12 is located on the right-hand end and then attached to the base. The symmetry of theconnector 28permits LEDs 30 andphotodetectors 20 of thesensor unit 4 to be connected to sockets associated with a respective sensing station, even though the particular LEDs and the photodetectors are not the identical members as were received in those sockets when thesensor unit 4 was installed with thehinge 12 on the left. Thus the sockets ofconnector element 28, the circuitry and traces on printedcircuit board 44 and theindicators 46 are dedicated to particular respective sensing stations, while the respectivelight emitting diodes 30 and thephotodetectors 20 are not sensitive to any particular sensing station. - The hinged structure of the
sensor unit 4 facilitates mounting thesensor 2 to apparatus. As described hereinabove, thedoor 10 can be made to open either right or left depending upon the orientation ofsensor unit 4 uponbase 6. The ability of the door to open allows thesensor 2 to be positioned to apparatus after the material M to be sensed is in place, or facilitates replacing the material during operation. Moreover, if the sensor requires service, acomplete sensor unit 4 may be removed frombase 6 and anew unit 4 attached thereto in little time. While the multistation through beam photoelectric sensor of this invention has been disclosed in a single preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that it is susceptible of various modifications without departing from the scope of the appended claims.
Claims (16)
- A multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor (2) comprising:a sensor housing (4) comprising a plurality of through beam photoelectric sensor units (20,30) mounted at spaced locations in said housing(4), said locations corresponding to stations at which sensing is required, and one portion (26) of plug-in electrical connector means (24) electrically connected to said sensors;a base (6) comprising a mating portion (28) of said plug-in electrical connector means (24) and electric circuit means (44) electrically connected to said mating portion (28) for transmitting electric power to and receiving electric signals from said sensor units (20,30) through said plug-in connector means (24); andmeans for attaching said sensor housing (4) to said base (6) in a selected one of two operating positions rotationally spaced 180 degrees, said mating portion (28) of said electrical connector means (24) being plugged into said one portion (26) of said connector means (24) in each of said two operating positions.
- The multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 1 wherein said base (6) comprises a plurality of indicator means (46) electrically connected to said circuit means (44) in fixed correspondence to particular said stations for indicating a sensed condition at a particular said station irrespective of said operating position of said sensor housing (4) to said base (6).
- The multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 2 wherein said sensor housing (4) comprises:a body member (8);a door member (10); andhinge means (12) hingedly mounting said door (10) to said body (8) at one side of said stations, said door (10) being swingable between open and closed positions on said body (8) across said stations, said hinge (12) means being located at an opposite side of said stations when said sensor housing (4) is attached to said base (6) in an other of said two operating positions.
- The multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 3 wherein said photoelectric sensor units (20,30) each comprise a light emitting device (30) and a photodetector device (20) arranged on opposite sides of a sensing zone at a respective said station, one of said devices (20,30) being mounted in said door member (10) and an other of said devices (20,30) being mounted in said body member(8).
- The multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 4 wherein a space (8b,10b) is provided between said door (10) and said body (8) at each station when said door (10) is closed upon said body (8) for receiving a means being sensed, said sensing zone being in said space (8b,10b).
- A multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) comprising:a base (6) comprising electronic means (44) and one portion (28) of a plug-in electrical connector (24) connected to said electronic means(44);a sensor housing (4) comprising a plurality of light emitting devices (30) and photodetectors (20) arranged in cooperating pairs defining a plurality of through beam photoelectric sensors at spaced locations along said housing (4) corresponding to sensing stations, and a mating portion (26) of said plug-in electrical connector (24) connected to respective said light emitting devices (30) and photodetectors (20); andmeans (8a,52) for attaching said sensor housing (4) to said base (6) in one of two operating positions, said operating positions being rotationally spaced 180 degrees, and said mating portion (26) of said plug-in connector (24) being operably plugged into said one portion (28) of said plug-in connector (24) in each of said operating positions for transmitting electric power to said light emitting devices (30) and photodetectors (20) from said electronic means (44) and for transmitting electric signals from said photodetectors (20) to said electronic means(44).
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 6 wherein said base (6) comprises a plurality of externally visible indicator means (46) electrically connected to said electronic means (44) in fixed correspondence to particular said stations for indicating a sensed condition at a particular said station in either operating position of said sensor housing (4) on said base(6).
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 7 wherein said sensor housing (4) comprises:a body (8) having one of said plurality of light emitting devices (30) and (10) photodetectors (20) mounted therein;a door (10) having an other of said plurality of light emitting devices (30) and photodetectors (20) mounted therein;hinge means (12) pivotally mounting said door (10) to said body (8) at one side of said stations, said door (10) being pivotally movable between an open position and a position closed upon said body (8) wherein respective said light emitting devices (30) and photodetectors (20) are aligned; andflexible conductor means (36) extending between said body (8) and said door (10) for electrically connecting said other of said plurality of light emitting devices (30) and photodetectors (20) to said mating portion (26) of said plug-in electrical connector(24);wherein said hinge means (12) is located at an opposite side of said stations when said sensor housing (4) is attached to said base (6) in an other of said two operating positions.
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 8 wherein space (8b,10b) is provided between said door (10) and said body(8) at each station when said door (10) is closed upon said body (8) for receiving a means being sensed.
- A multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) comprising:a base (6) having an internal cavity and an opening communicating (38b) with said cavity;electronic circuit means (44) mounted in said cavity;one portion (28) of a plug-in electrical connector (24) positioned within said opening (38b) and connected to said electronic circuit means(44);a sensor body (8) comprising a mating portion (26) of said plug-in electrical connector (24) mountable to said base (6) over said opening (38b) in a selected one of two operating positions, said operating positions being rotationally spaced 180 degrees apart, and said mating portion (26) being plugged into said one portion (28) of said electrical connector (24) in each of said operating positions;a door (10) pivotally mounted to said sensor body (8) by hinge means(12) disposed at one side of said sensor body(8);a plurality of light emitting devices (30) mounted at spaced locations in one of said sensor body (8) and said door(10);a plurality of photodetector devices (20) mounted at spaced locations in the other of said sensor body (8) and door(10), said devices (20,30) being disposed in aligned relationship when said door (10) is closed upon said body (8) for defining photoelectric sensors at spaced locations corresponding to stations at which sensing is required.
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 10 further comprising:
indicator means (46) disposed in said base cavity and visible externally of said base(6), said indicator means (46) being electrically connected to said electronic circuit means (44) in fixed correspondence to particular said stations for indicating a sensed condition at a particular said station in each operating position of said sensor body (8) on said base(6). - The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 11 wherein said one portion (28) of said plug-in electrical connector (24) is symmetrical about a center thereof.
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 11 wherein said plurality of light emitting devices (30) are mounted in said door(10), and further comprising flexible conductor means (36) extending between said door (10) and said body (8) for electrically connecting said light emitting devices (30) to said mating portion (26) of said plug-in electrical connector(24).
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 13 wherein a respective said light emitting device (30) is spaced from a respective aligned photodetector (20) device when said door (10) is closed upon said body (8) for defining a sensing zone at a respective station, and said means to be sensed is disposed in said sensing zone.
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 14 wherein said door (10) and said body (8) provide a space (8b,10b) therebetween when said door (10) is closed on said body (8) for receiving said means to be sensed therebetween.
- The multistation through beam photoelectric sensor (2) defined in claim 10 wherein said hinge means (12) disposed at one side of said sensor body (8) is disposed at one side of said stations in one operating position of said sensor body (8) on said base (6) and is disposed at an opposite side of said stations in an other of said operating positions of said sensor body (8)on said base(6).
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US07/940,130 US5256873A (en) | 1992-09-03 | 1992-09-03 | Multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor |
US940130 | 1992-09-03 |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP0585760A1 EP0585760A1 (en) | 1994-03-09 |
EP0585760B1 true EP0585760B1 (en) | 1997-01-08 |
Family
ID=25474289
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP93113375A Expired - Lifetime EP0585760B1 (en) | 1992-09-03 | 1993-08-20 | Multiple station through beam photoelectric sensor |
Country Status (4)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US5256873A (en) |
EP (1) | EP0585760B1 (en) |
DE (1) | DE69307225T2 (en) |
ES (1) | ES2096818T3 (en) |
Families Citing this family (12)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5365062A (en) * | 1992-10-05 | 1994-11-15 | Eaton Corporation | Photoelectric sensor assembly with transparent housing an integrally molded lens |
EP0959371A3 (en) * | 1998-05-22 | 2002-04-17 | INES Elektronik-Systementwicklung-Produktions GmbH | Profile for light curtain |
US6354857B1 (en) | 1998-12-11 | 2002-03-12 | Endress + Hauser Gmbh + Co. | Transmitter housing |
EP1008836B1 (en) * | 1998-12-11 | 2004-09-01 | Endress + Hauser GmbH + Co. KG | Transmitter housing |
DE10049743A1 (en) * | 2000-09-29 | 2002-04-11 | Wtw Weilheim | Modular measuring system for a water treatment plant, comprises a housing with sensors, shared contacts and a unique identification unit |
DE102004010772A1 (en) * | 2004-03-05 | 2005-10-06 | Deere & Company, Moline | Discharge device with a measuring device |
AR065804A1 (en) * | 2007-03-23 | 2009-07-01 | Smithkline Beecham Corp | COMPOSITE OF INDOL CARBOXAMIDE, PHARMACEUTICAL COMPOSITION THAT UNDERSTANDS IT AND USE OF THIS COMPOUND TO PREPARE A MEDICINAL PRODUCT |
DE102011005113A1 (en) * | 2011-03-04 | 2012-09-06 | Zf Friedrichshafen Ag | Covering element for covering sensor carrier of housing of sensor for sensor module, has recess that is formed in upper surface of covering element, where recess is adjacent to socket end at side of covering element |
DE202011000608U1 (en) * | 2011-03-17 | 2012-06-18 | Sick Ag | Mounting profile for a light curtain housing and light grid |
DE102012111450B4 (en) | 2012-11-27 | 2021-09-09 | Leuze Electronic Gmbh + Co. Kg | sensor |
FR3041200A1 (en) * | 2015-09-14 | 2017-03-17 | Swg-Ta | SYSTEM FOR CALCULATING AT LEAST ONE PARAMETER RELATING TO ENERGY PERFORMANCE OF A LOCAL AND ASSOCIATED METHOD |
DE102018108600B4 (en) * | 2018-04-11 | 2020-02-20 | Jankowski Gmbh & Co. Kg | Wire drawing device with a sensor device for determining the wire position and method for operating a wire drawing device |
Family Cites Families (12)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US2256595A (en) * | 1939-07-13 | 1941-09-23 | Photoswitch Inc | Photoelectric system |
US3800161A (en) * | 1972-12-19 | 1974-03-26 | Atomic Energy Commission | Portable dynamic multistation photometer-fluorometer |
CH604741A5 (en) * | 1976-10-08 | 1978-09-15 | Paul Manella | Continuous fluid flow monitoring equipment |
US4217492A (en) * | 1978-07-17 | 1980-08-12 | Banner Engineering Corp. | Modular photoelectric switch |
US4412129A (en) * | 1981-04-01 | 1983-10-25 | Eaton Corporation | Adjustable photoelectric detector head for solid state limit switch |
FR2567652B1 (en) * | 1984-07-11 | 1986-11-07 | Smh Alcatel | OPTO-ELECTRONIC DEVICE FOR DETECTING THE PASSAGE OF OBJECTS |
US4678253A (en) * | 1984-10-29 | 1987-07-07 | Eaton Corporation | Bus duct having improved bus bar clamping structure |
US4786803A (en) * | 1987-06-01 | 1988-11-22 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Single channel encoder with specific scale support structure |
US4841283A (en) * | 1987-12-21 | 1989-06-20 | Southern Steel Company | Security hinge utilizing concealed radiative sensing to detect hinge position |
JPH0690900B2 (en) * | 1988-11-14 | 1994-11-14 | 株式会社キーエンス | Multi-axis photoelectric switch |
US4975062A (en) * | 1989-05-19 | 1990-12-04 | Motorola, Inc. | Hermaphroditic connector |
US5130556A (en) * | 1990-11-07 | 1992-07-14 | Eaton Corporation | Photoelectric fiber thickness and edge position sensor |
-
1992
- 1992-09-03 US US07/940,130 patent/US5256873A/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
-
1993
- 1993-08-20 DE DE69307225T patent/DE69307225T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1993-08-20 ES ES93113375T patent/ES2096818T3/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1993-08-20 EP EP93113375A patent/EP0585760B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
US5256873A (en) | 1993-10-26 |
ES2096818T3 (en) | 1997-03-16 |
DE69307225D1 (en) | 1997-02-20 |
DE69307225T2 (en) | 1997-05-15 |
EP0585760A1 (en) | 1994-03-09 |
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